nasty
adjective
nas·ty ˈna-stē 
nastier; nastiest
1
a
: disgustingly filthy
nasty living conditions
b
: physically repugnant
a nasty taste
2
: indecent, obscene
nasty language
3
: mean, tawdry
living a cheap and nasty life
G. B. Shaw
G. B. Shaw4
a
: extremely hazardous (see hazardous sense 1) or harmful
a nasty undertow
b
: causing severe pain or suffering
a nasty wound
a nasty fall
c
: sharply unpleasant : disagreeable
nasty weather
5
a
: difficult to understand or deal with
a nasty problem
a nasty curveball
b
: psychologically unsettling : trying
a nasty fear that she was lost
6
: lacking in courtesy or sportsmanship
a nasty trick
nastily
ˈna-stə-lē
adverb nastiness
ˈna-stē-nəs
noun nasty noun
Synonyms
- cheap
- contemptible
- cruddy
- deplorable
- despicable
- dirty
- grubby
- lame
- lousy
- mean
- paltry
- pitiable
- pitiful
- ratty
- scabby
- scummy
- scurvy
- sneaking
- sorry
- wretched
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
She has a nasty habit of biting her fingernails. The medicine left a nasty taste in my mouth. That nasty old man yelled at me just for stepping on his lawn! He sent a nasty letter to the company. She's got quite a nasty temper. He said lots of downright nasty things about her. She called him a few nasty names and left. See More
Recent Examples on the Web All of those musicians have since talked about being hyper-sexualized by an industry that was particularly nasty to young women. Elizabeth Wagmeister, Variety, 8 Sep. 2022 Breaking it down: Short-term, the inflation picture is undeniably nasty, putting pressure on central bankers to get the situation under control quickly. Julia Horowitz, CNN, 14 July 2022 There’s a lot of really ugly, nasty things with definite racist overtones that don’t rise to the level of a hate crime or that someone could actually be prosecuted for that. San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 May 2022 Brown suggests the Markles were trapped by paparazzi and tabloid reporters who hounded them into doing and saying nasty things about Meghan and Harry. Maria Puente, USA TODAY, 26 Apr. 2022 Oh, what mean and nasty things men said about women who dared to fight for the right to vote in America. Marilyn Stasio, Variety, 6 Apr. 2022 No one intended for the watch to spend more than two days at such depths, where the pressure is 16,000 pounds per square inch—conditions that would incidentally do very nasty things to your body. Jeremy White, Wired, 7 Mar. 2022 And Adam has said a lot of really negative nasty things about Trump, personally. Rick Pearson, chicagotribune.com, 18 Nov. 2021 Don't say nasty things, don't make a person question themselves. Joelle Goldstein, PEOPLE.com, 11 Nov. 2021 See More
Elizabeth Wagmeister, Variety, 8 Sep. 2022 Breaking it down: Short-term, the inflation picture is undeniably nasty, putting pressure on central bankers to get the situation under control quickly. Julia Horowitz, CNN, 14 July 2022 There’s a lot of really ugly, nasty things with definite racist overtones that don’t rise to the level of a hate crime or that someone could actually be prosecuted for that. San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 May 2022 Brown suggests the Markles were trapped by paparazzi and tabloid reporters who hounded them into doing and saying nasty things about Meghan and Harry. Maria Puente, USA TODAY, 26 Apr. 2022 Oh, what mean and nasty things men said about women who dared to fight for the right to vote in America. Marilyn Stasio, Variety, 6 Apr. 2022 No one intended for the watch to spend more than two days at such depths, where the pressure is 16,000 pounds per square inch—conditions that would incidentally do very nasty things to your body. Jeremy White, Wired, 7 Mar. 2022 And Adam has said a lot of really negative nasty things about Trump, personally. Rick Pearson, chicagotribune.com, 18 Nov. 2021 Don't say nasty things, don't make a person question themselves. Joelle Goldstein, PEOPLE.com, 11 Nov. 2021 See More Word History
Etymology
Middle English
First Known Use
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Phrases Containing nasty
Kids Definition
nasty
adjective
nas·ty ˈna-stē
nastier; nastiest
1
: mean entry 2 sense 1
He has a nasty disposition.
2
: very unpleasant
nasty weather
a nasty taste
3
: very serious : harmful
I had a nasty fall on the ice.
4
: very dirty : filthy
5
: indecent
nasty jokes
nastiness
noun
1
as in malice
the desire to cause pain for the satisfaction of doing harm there was a natural nastiness about him that was evident from the time he was a small child Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- malice
- venom
- hatred
- meanness
- cruelty
- hatefulness
- spitefulness
- spite
- maliciousness
- malevolence
- viciousness
- hostility
- disgust
- malignity
- bitterness
- jealousy
- malignancy
- contempt
- malignance
- spleen
- cattiness
- hate
- abusiveness
- disdain
- despite
- animosity
- vindictiveness
- rancor
- antagonism
- resentment
- distaste
- loathing
- vengefulness
- mean-spiritedness
- enmity
- revulsion
- abhorrence
- antipathy
- abomination
- bitchiness
- repugnance
- repulsion
- horror
- resentment
- bile
- rancor
- vitriol
- jaundice
- bitchery
- grudge
- virulence
- scorn
- ill will
- invidiousness
- execration
- aversion
- despicableness
- pique
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- love
- civility
- passion
- devotion
- friendliness
- hospitality
- infatuation
- amiability
- kindness
- affection
- amity
- adoration
- sympathy
- worship
- ardor
- understanding
- veneration
- cordiality
- amicability
- kindliness
- empathy
- friendship
- goodwill
- charity
- comity
2
as in grossness
the quality or state of being obscene the nastiness of the graffiti required that the school remove it immediately Synonyms & Similar Words
- grossness
- vulgarity
- foulness
- crudeness
- dirtiness
- filth
- coarseness
- suggestiveness
- obscenity
- abusiveness
- bawdiness
- crudity
- raunch
- profanity
- filthiness
- lewdness
- lasciviousness
- ribaldry
- offensiveness
- impurity
- smut
- raunchiness
- distastefulness
- indecency
- lowness
- blueness
- naughtiness
- wantonness
- dirt
- smuttiness
- unpleasantness
- atrocity
- perversity
- broadness
- obnoxiousness
- earthiness
- indelicacy
- unacceptability
- undesirability
- saltiness
- raciness
- impureness
- depravity
- wickedness
- perverseness
- perversion
- repulsiveness
- kinkiness
- lechery
- loathsomeness
- immodesty
- repugnance
- gaminess
- reprehensibility
- infamy
- atrociousness
- repellency
- indecorousness
- unbecomingness
- depravedness
- objectionableness
- pervertedness
- indelicateness
- scurrilousness
- reprehensibleness
- exceptionability
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- puritanism
- priggishness
- prudery
- primness
- prudishness
- decency
- decorum
- correctness
- seemliness
- purity
- appropriateness
- suitability
- fitness
- suitableness
- perfection
- priggery
- spotlessness
- decorousness
3
as in sordidness
the state or quality of being dirty the piles of rotting food in the kitchen were only one element in the apartment's general impression of appalling nastiness Synonyms & Similar Words
- sordidness
- blackness
- staining
- grubbiness
- dustiness
- uncleanliness
- dinginess
- dinge
- uncleanness
- griminess
- dirtiness
- foulness
- soilage
- squalidness
- messiness
- filthiness
- sloppiness
- untidiness
- squalor
- smuttiness
- muddiness
- insanitation
- impurity
- discoloration
- impureness
- mussiness
- sootiness
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- cleanliness
- purity
- spotlessness
- sociopathic
- sociopathies
- sociopaths
- sociopolitical
- sociopsychological
- socioreligious
- sociosexual
- socius
- socius criminis
- sociétaire
- société anonyme
- société en com
- société en commandite
- sociétés anonymes
- sociétés en commandite
- sock
- sock away
- sock cymbal
- sock hop
- sock in
- sock it to
- sock lining
- sock puppet
- sock suspenders
- sockdolager